Carlos Alcaraz was good value for his four-set victory over Novak Djokovic in the final earlier today.
However, John McEnroe still felt like he made a mistake.
Despite lifting the Australian Open title just a few hours ago, there was a point where it seemed really unlikely that he would be the one holding that trophy.
After all, Djokovic had him on the ropes, having snagged the first set with relative comfort.
It is what happened after this first set that really caught McEnroe’s eye though, pointing out how Carlos Alcaraz corrected his mistake.
Carlos Alcaraz’s mistake in the Australian Open final
Speaking live on ESPN, the American commended the Spaniard for the power and bravery he showed to see out the match.
However, he also criticised him for not starting with that energy, noting: “I think that was actually the type of match he should have played in the beginning.
Grade Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open performance out of 10…
“Maybe he was affected by that five and a half hour match in the heat, and he wasn’t able to execute that, but as his body loosened up, he started to do his thing, and obviously, in the end, it paid huge dividends.”
Patrick McEnroe then chimed in with a commendation of his own, adding: “Yeah, I mean, his tactical awareness, I think, is outstanding. You’ve got to give him and his team credit for that.
“We know about the shot-making ability. We know just about the pure talent. We saw his grit, his determination in that struggle against Zverev with the heat, with the cramps.
“But I think we saw some really high tennis IQ. We talked about that during the match from this man, so now he’s already at 22, he’s got seven majors.”
Alcaraz thanked Djokovic in his post-match speech, after the Serbian had given an interesting speech of his own, which hinted that he might not return to Melbourne.
Carlos Alcaraz got lucky against Novak Djokovic
Realistically, Alcaraz got a little bit fortunate in today’s Australian Open final.
After all, were it not for Novak Djokovic’s drop in energy levels, almost certainly caused by his age and the gruelling semi-final he had played two days prior, he was on track to claim the title.
He raced into a one-set lead, hitting forehands that had the 22-year-old scrambling all over the court.
Who finishes their career on more majors – Alcaraz or Djokovic?
However, after that first set, that incredible level dropped, and only declined as the match went on.
This coincided with the youthful energy of Alcaraz kicking in, driving him to victory.
It was not a vintage performance by any means, but he was good value for his triumph. However, he can count himself a little lucky that Djokovic was not able to maintain that incredible level throughout the match.
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